Aichi-ken Things to Do

The year 2013 will see another get-together of world tourists to Nagoya probably since 2005 when the Expo was held. It is not only the opening of Honmaru Palace of Nagoya Castle but another tourist attraction Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Garden will be much refreshed. Nagoya castle had two grand palaces, Honmaru Palace adjacent to castle keep and...

Higashiyama Koen(Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Garden, Higashiyama Park, Nagoya Zoo and Botanic Garden) is the second popular zoo in Japan in 2010 with 2.18 million annual visitors twice as large figure as that of Nagoya castle and used to be the largest of its kind in Asia before the second world war. The park which has about 60 ha in area is...

The Tokugawa Art Museum is an excellent museum dedicated to displaying objects from the collections of the Owari Tokugawa which ruled from Nagoya and were one of the most powerful domains of feudal Japan. As such, the collection of artifacts is impressive and those familiar with Japanese history should recognize the names of some of the artifacts'...

Atsuta Shrine was first built to enshrine the Imperial Sword Kusanagi, one of the three Imperial Regalia, around the 1st or 2nd century. According to legend however, the real sword was later lost and never recovered after it sank to the bottom of the sea in the Battle of Dannoura. None of the regalia (the sword, jewel, and mirror) are permitted to...

The most interesting thing for me in this Aquarium is the dolphins performance. They really brilliant. Cool !!
Beside that you can see the big whales and you can find nemo and dory also in here :p
Entree fee : 2000yen

Nagoya TV Tower is one of many towers that you can find in Japanese cities but Nagoya's tower has the distinction of being the very first tower built in Japan, dating back to 1954. The elevator takes you up to the Sky Deck which offers a nice view and from there you can go up a staircase to the Sky Balcony for an even better view.
From the top you...

Nagoya is not known for its temples, but Osu Kannon is one of the few famous temples in the city. The original temple was built in Gifu Prefecture and then moved here in 1612 by Tokugawa Ieyasu. Unfortunately, the original temple did not survive and the current temple was rebuilt in the 1970s. The temple houses the oldest known copy of the Kojiki,...

Shirotori Teien close to Atsuta Shrine was designed in 1989 for World Design Expo held in Nagoya. This stroll landscape garden has a imcoming tide pond just like that of Hamarikyu Garden in Tokyo. I was most impressed by the reconstruction of ravine and waterfall home to various kinds of dragonflies. This garden also has wide variety of flowers...

The JR Central Towers, also known as the Twin Towers, were built in 1999 and have since become one of the city's icons. On the ground floor is JR Nagoya Station and shops and on other floors are shops and restaurants. It is said to be the largest station building in the world.
Aside from the view from the outside, what makes the towers a nice stop...

At Osu area,there are many shops sell snacks to take out.
Such as Mitarashi dango,Takoyaki,Okonomiyaki...
The picture is a famous Mitarashi dango shop in Osu called Shinsuzume honten.
You can buy a piece of Mitarashi dango at 80 yen.
The Mitarashi is covered with a kind of soy sauce.
It's delicious! :-)
Take a walk and Have snacks!

Ninomaru Garden is one of the most well-known Japanese gardens featuring excellent stone formations. It is designated as National Historic Site the part originally built in early 17th century but later it was remodified to dry landscape garden just as it is now. After the Meiji Restoration in 1868 the garden suffered the some destruction and part...

Nagashima Resort, an amusement complex in Kuwana, Mie, is made up of Nagashima Spa Land, Mitui Outlet Park Jazzdream Nagashima, Nabana No Sato and Yuami-no-Shima a spa facility. It is unarguably the most popular destination in suburban Nagoya (5.28 million visitors in 2009 #5 in Japan). During summer its swimming pool attracts huge number of people...

When you arrive at or depart from CHUBU CENTRAIR International Airport,it is worth visiting Sky Town at the 4th floor in the airport.
There are a lots of restaurants and souvenir shops,even a public bath.
I believe that you will be able to enjoy them very much.

When I dropped by Oasis 21 close to TV tower in February 2012, the TV tower was still being renovated. It is very uniquely built supporting the huge body of water at the top. You can have a great view of TV tower and Hisaya Odori Park.

Meiji Village, a must must see in Nagoya.
Actually, it located in Inuyama city, the neighbor of Nagoya city.
You can see many historical things in here such as old clocks, old train, old building in Meiji Era which rebuild in here etc.
A recommended place!!
Check the entry ticket in Nagoya Station.
I bought a ticket set of Meitetsu Train and...

Tagata Shrine and Ooagata Shrine, two Shinto shrines located not so far away from one another, are considered as couple shrines. Tagata Shrine is located in Tagata-cho, Komaki City, Aichi Prefecture. It is dedicated to a god named "Mitoshino-Kami" and a goddess named "Tamahime-no-Mikoto." Ooagata jinja shrine is located a few miles northeast from...

Miya-juku during Edo period (1603-1868) used to be the biggest lodging station of Tokaido highway. It had the Miya port for the Shichiri-no-Watashi ferry to the next station Kuwana. The area thrived because it is the town close to the Atsuta Shrine, 1,900-year-old shrine with one of the Three Imperial Regalia of Japan, the Sword of Kusanagi,...

The Toyota Automobile Museum is a great way to spend a couple hours or, if you're an enthusiast, an entire afternoon. Situated on a scenic campus just 5 minutes' walk from the Geidai-dori Station, the museum features a handsome collection of antique cars, art gallery, research library, children's play area, gift store and cafe.
The collection...

Toganji Temple was built by Oda Nobuyuki and moved to its present location in 1714. The temple is famous for its large Buddha (Daibutsu) which was built in 1987. Unlike most other Daibutsu, this one is a deep green color and was made in a more Indian style. Large elephant statues are located on the corners. It's an interesting site.
The temple is...

Nagoya Noh Theater is located close to the parking space for tour buses near the Main Gate of the Nagoya Castle. This theater is dedicated to traditional art performance such as Noh or Kyogen plays. It is also used as a venue for classical music performance. The gate and the wall with cascading water outside the theater building is great as well....

This review is based on my visit to the park on September 23, 2013. When I was walking around the avenue of Himalayan cedar trees I found some cedar cones on the branches of the trees. During winter children as well as some adults enjoy picking the rose-like cones on the ground. Near the Gazebo recently restored to the original shape college...

Hoshigaoka is one of the trendsetting towns in Nagoya located in Chikusa-ward of Nagoya sandwiched between two of the popular Nagoya parks, Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Garden and Heiwa Park. One of the popular places in Hoshigaoka is Hoshigaoke Terrace. There are some nice shops and cafes in Hoshigaoka area. It has really upascale feel. There is...

Nagoya has huge undershopping malls.
One is near by nagoya station.
The other is in Sakae area.
There are various shops.(boutiques,restaurants,bookstore,etc)
Both of them look like a maze.
It is a very wide shopping mall.
You can enjoy taking a walk at there.
and Ofcourse,enjoy shopping! :)

Sakae is the commercial, shopping and entertainment center of Nagoya. Popular spots include Nagoya TV tower, Oasis 21, Sunshine Sakae and Mitsukoshi and Matsuzakaya Depertment. Also its underground mall is one of the largest in Japan.

Toyokawa Inari is one of the most popular day trip destinations from tourists staying in Nagoya. Fushimi Inari shrine is best known for fox-deity shrine but what Toyokawa Inari is different from Fushimi Inari is Toyokawa Inari is a part of Buddhist temple MYOGONJI TEMPLE, one of the major Soto-zen Buddhist temples in Japan. What's astounding and...

Nagoya ekimen yokocyo is located on the 2nd floor in the Sunshine Sakae.
There are lots of Ramen shops which came from other region of Japan.
The floor is designed like an amusement park.
It's very interesting!

Hisaya Odori Park is the strip of park space in the middle of 100m wide road. It is often praised as the success case of city reconstruction plan after the city was completely burned down by the massive air raid during the second world war. It spans about two kilometers from north to south and TV tower is located in the central part. The park name,...

Meijo Park in narrower definition is the park located north of second moat of Nagoya Castle. It is a nice park for the families with small children because there are two kiddie parks, at the north section of the park and the south part of the park facing the water moat. Partcularly lawn area with mound full of flowers, a windmill and narrow streams...

Asunaru Kanayama is a shopping mall at Kanayama.
It is located next to Kanayama station,so you can enjoy them very easily.
There are many shops and restaurants.
Sometimes,events are held.
If you stop at the Kanayama station to change the train,it's good to visit !

Kiyosu is one of the suburban cities of Nagoya(population:65,000). The biggest draw of the city is Kiyosu Castle keep reconstructed in 1989. Kiyosu castle used to be the center of Owari Province, western half of current Aichi Prefecture. By the order of Iyeyasu Tokugawa entire capital was moved to Nagoya in 1610 and since then as you know newer...

The Nagoya City Art Museum offers exhibits of famous artwork. When I was there I saw a Van Gogh exhibit. It's located close to Sakae and worth checking out if you are into art. Admission is around 1100 yen.

Sunshine Sakae is located at central sakae area.
It has a Ferris wheel(500 yen per person),many restaurants,ramen shops and clothes shops.
Particularly,on the 2nd floor,there are many ramen shops.
The floor is called "Nagoya ekimen yokocyo".
It's very attractive!

Arako kannon temple is a historical temple.
It's easy to get to the temple from Nagoya station.
(It takes about 7minutes by Aonami train and 7minutes on foot.)
When you visit the temple at pm1:00 to pm4:00 on the second Saturday,you can see a lot of precious statues of Buddha.
They are made of wood and very beautiful.

This is a sister museum to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Exhibitions are based on set themes; at the time I was there, the theme was "Human Figures" and featured 76 masterpieces by Rembrandt, Renoir, Degas, Van Gogh, Matisse and Picasso. Pretty impressive line-up.
Open 10am-7pm Tuesday to Friday and 10am to 5pm on weekends. Closed every...

Anyone interested in the automobile thing, the is the place YOU HAVE TO COME AND VISIT!!"The Toyota Automobile Museum was established to commemorate the history of automobile and is dedicated to building a properous future for man and motor car."Hours -- 9:30-17:00 (Last admission 30 minutes before closing)Closed on Monday (when a National Holiday...

You must try bangy jumping at "Minamichita-greenbarley." If you visit Aichi pre.It was first time to tried bungy for me but I think it was not so scared.It's just 20m. You stand up and when you prepared,and then hands up. It's a sigh." I am ready!!!" And worker will say "3..2..1...BUNGY!!!!!" Then you have to jump from head,legs or back. It is so...